US TV channel to tell story of slain Drum priest

To coincide with a memorial Mass marking the 101st anniversary of his death on August 11, the EWTN cable channel in the US will screen several programmes shining a light on the little known story of slain Drum priest Fr James Coyle.

His tragic death far from his native South Roscommon in Birmingham, Alabama, over a century ago at the hands of a Methodist Minister and a KKK member, formed the backdrop to Sheila Killian's first novel 'Something Bigger' a year ago.

Although fictionalised, it explored her grand uncle's incredible life and death on August 11, 1921, when he was shot and fatally wounded as he sat in the swing on his rectory front porch by an enraged minister whose daughter’s marriage to a Puerto Rican Father Coyle had presided over less than two hours before.

Father Coyle was a 'martyr to duty,' The Rt Rev. Edward P. Allen, Bishop of Mobile said in the days after his death, and it is this very theme that Fr Bryan Jerabek will reflect on at the Annual Father James E. Coyle Memorial Mass in the Cathedral of St Paul in Birmingham on August 11.

The cleric will also feature in a live show exploring Fr Coyle's legacy the day before (August 10) on the widely available religious cable channel, EWTN, along with Jim Pinto from The Fr Coyle Memorial Project.

The channel will also air a documentary made about his life entitled 'Fr James E. Coyle – Life and Legacy' on August 11, which has already been broadcast on Alabama Public Television.

Shots of Athlone feature in the promo for the programme.

Following a hugely controversial trial, Fr Coyle's killer Rev Stephenson was found not guilty two months later despite confessing to the crime.